National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Humanetics Corporation Receives Funding to Study New Drug for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, October 24, 2023

The funding will support a series of studies with its new drug candidate, BIO 300.

Key Points: 
  • The funding will support a series of studies with its new drug candidate, BIO 300.
  • The studies will focus on the ability of BIO 300 to attenuate progressive pulmonary fibrosis as a potential treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).
  • Notably, the drug has been shown to mitigate inflammation of the lungs (pneumonitis) and pulmonary fibrosis caused by radiation.
  • Humanetics further expanded applications for the drug into cancer radiation therapy, COVID-19, and other inflammatory pulmonary diseases.

UPDATE | Advanced imaging reveals altered brain chemistry of babies with congenital heart disease

Retrieved on: 
Monday, October 9, 2023

They found:

Key Points: 
  • They found:
    Those with CHD had higher levels of choline and lower levels of N-Acetyl aspartate-to-choline ratios compared to healthy babies, potentially representing disrupted brain development.
  • Babies with more complex CHD also had higher levels of cerebral lactate compared to babies with two ventricle CHD.
  • These critical heart defects generally require babies to undergo heart surgery not long after birth.
  • , chief of the Advanced Technologies and Surgery Branch in the Division of Cardiovascular Sciences at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

Advanced imaging reveals altered brain chemistry of babies with congenital heart disease

Retrieved on: 
Monday, October 9, 2023

They found:

Key Points: 
  • They found:
    Those with CHD had higher levels of choline and lower levels of N-Acetyl aspartate-to-choline ratios compared to healthy babies, potentially representing disrupted brain development.
  • Babies with more complex CHD also had higher levels of cerebral lactate compared to babies with two ventricle CHD.
  • These critical heart defects generally require babies to undergo heart surgery not long after birth.
  • , chief of the Advanced Technologies and Surgery Branch in the Division of Cardiovascular Sciences at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

Thermedical Awarded $3 Million NIH Grant to Study Promising Treatment for Ventricular Tachycardia, a Leading Cause of Sudden Cardiac Death

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, October 10, 2023

VT is an abnormally rapid heart rhythm that is a leading cause of sudden cardiac death worldwide.

Key Points: 
  • VT is an abnormally rapid heart rhythm that is a leading cause of sudden cardiac death worldwide.
  • Sudden cardiac death kills 325,000 adults in the U.S. every year1.
  • "SERF ablation is a new approach that has the potential to improve treatment of this arrhythmia.
  • Today, VT patients with ICDs who experience VT episodes may be treated with conventional RF ablation, a lengthy procedure with a moderate success rate of approximately 50%.

Rigel Announces Presentation at the Upcoming IDWeek 2023

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, October 11, 2023

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Oct. 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: RIGL) today announced an upcoming oral presentation highlighting data from the FOCUS Phase 3 clinical trial of fostamatinib in hospitalized COVID-19 patients without respiratory failure who have certain high-risk prognostic factors at IDWeek 2023 being held October 11-15, 2023, in Boston, MA and provided an update on the ACTIV-4 Host Tissue trial of fostamatinib in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

Key Points: 
  • SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Oct. 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: RIGL) today announced an upcoming oral presentation highlighting data from the FOCUS Phase 3 clinical trial of fostamatinib in hospitalized COVID-19 patients without respiratory failure who have certain high-risk prognostic factors at IDWeek 2023 being held October 11-15, 2023, in Boston, MA and provided an update on the ACTIV-4 Host Tissue trial of fostamatinib in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
  • However, our focus remains on our hematology-oncology commercial and clinical portfolio," said Raul Rodriguez, Rigel's president and CEO.
  • Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive fostamatinib (150 mg BID administered orally) or placebo for 14 days.
  • A significantly higher proportion of patients who received fostamatinib were discharged from the hospital by Day 15 compared to placebo (p=0.0029).

Daxor Corporation Awarded Support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Catalyze Preclinical Services Program

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, October 4, 2023

Oak Ridge, TN, Oct. 04, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Daxor Corporation (NASDAQ: DXR), the global leader in blood volume measurement technology, today announces it has been accepted into the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Catalyze Preclinical Services Program. This program supports preclinical development, including studies and activities needed to meet the regulatory requirements for therapeutic and device submissions of technologies relevant to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)’s mission. This effort will be done in collaboration with two nationally recognized contract research organizations, to support the continued development of Daxor’s non-nuclear fluorescent blood volume analyzer (BVA) device.

Key Points: 
  • We are gratified to receive the valuable support of the NIH’s Catalyze Program which recognizes the significant impact that this technology will bring once commercialized.
  • The Catalyze Program is an ultra-selective initiative to fund the most promising future medical innovations by the NIH.
  • The Catalyze Program is designed to fund key preclinical research of technologies and transformative platforms by NHLBI.
  • Daxor will receive support and direct funding from third-party labs to conduct needed preclinical work toward an FDA submission of its next generation non-nuclear tracer system.

A Milestone Clinical Study Reveals that Elevating Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide (NAD+) with Nicotinamide Riboside (NR) Supplementation Effectively Reduces Inflammation in Both Healthy Subjects and Immune Cells Derived from Psoriasis Patients

Retrieved on: 
Monday, October 2, 2023

The clinical trial was part of the ChromaDex External Research Program (CERP™), which donated ChromaDex’s patented nicotinamide riboside (NR) ingredient, Niagen, for the advancement of this research.

Key Points: 
  • The clinical trial was part of the ChromaDex External Research Program (CERP™), which donated ChromaDex’s patented nicotinamide riboside (NR) ingredient, Niagen, for the advancement of this research.
  • This is Dr. Sack’s fourth published study on NR, and the seventh clinical study overall, that demonstrates NR’s effectiveness in reducing inflammation, an important indicator of how the body is aging,” remarked Rob Fried, CEO of ChromaDex.
  • This is the third published human clinical study demonstrating that NR supplementation has a protective effect in healthy individuals and lays the foundation for future clinical research ( Elhassan et al.
  • Research suggests a depletion of NAD+ is associated with impaired inflammatory responses and innate immune dysfunction, indicating NAD+ levels may have a critical impact on the function of immune cells.

Orange Grove Bio Subsidiary Awarded $2.05 Million SBIR Phase II Grant to Advance Development of Novel Platelet Preservation Technology

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, September 28, 2023

Preservation Bio seeks to transform blood banking for donated platelets with an ex vivo additive that protects platelets from the damage normally caused by refrigeration.

Key Points: 
  • Preservation Bio seeks to transform blood banking for donated platelets with an ex vivo additive that protects platelets from the damage normally caused by refrigeration.
  • The SBIR grant will help fund Preservation Bio’s continued advancement of G04 through preclinical development and toward the clinic.
  • With more than eight million platelet units donated yearly, the global platelet market is estimated to be at least $4 billion.
  • Orange Grove Bio fosters strong relationships with technology transfer offices outside of the traditional medical technology hubs of Boston and San Francisco.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Awarded $10.2 Million NIH Grant to Explore the Early Signs of Arrhythmic Mitral Valve Prolapse

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, September 26, 2023

NEW YORK, Sept. 26, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have been awarded a $10.2 million grant from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health to investigate risk factors for malignant arrhythmias in mitral valve prolapse. This work aims to develop a better understanding of the condition and novel solutions to improve patient outcomes.

Key Points: 
  • The grant is a collaboration between four Icahn Mount Sinai specialties: Cardiac Electrophysiology, Cardiology, Cardiovascular Surgery, and the BioMedical Engineering and Imaging Institute (BMEII).
  • The grant is a collaboration between four Icahn Mount Sinai specialties: Cardiac Electrophysiology, Cardiology, Cardiovascular Surgery, and the BioMedical Engineering and Imaging Institute (BMEII).
  • In the United States, it is estimated that between 7 and 9 million people have mitral valve prolapse, the most common form of valve disease.
  • Mitral valve prolapse occurs when two flaps within the mitral valve don't close smoothly or evenly, but instead bulge (prolapse) upward into the left atrium when the heart contracts.

Perosphere Technologies Awarded Federal Grants for Point-of-Care Coagulometer

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, September 19, 2023

Perosphere Technologies (Perosphere Technologies Inc.), a private medical technologies company focused on developing coagulation diagnostics, has today announced the receipt of two prestigious federal grants: a Direct Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and a subaward through an Atlanta Center for Microsystems Engineered Point-of-Care Technologies (ACME POCT) Center Grant, funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB/NIH).

Key Points: 
  • Perosphere Technologies (Perosphere Technologies Inc.), a private medical technologies company focused on developing coagulation diagnostics, has today announced the receipt of two prestigious federal grants: a Direct Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and a subaward through an Atlanta Center for Microsystems Engineered Point-of-Care Technologies (ACME POCT) Center Grant, funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB/NIH).
  • The grants, totaling over $2MM, will fund the further development and commercialization of a novel point-of-care (PoC) coagulometer, known as the Perosphere Technologies POC Coagulometer.
  • “We are very honored to receive these grants from NIH and ACME POCT, as they will present a unique opportunity to further expand our groundbreaking point-of-care coagulation diagnostics technology,” said Dr. Stefan Zappe, Principal Investigator and Chief Technology Officer at Perosphere Technologies.
  • “Perosphere Technologies aims to revolutionize coagulation testing by providing healthcare professionals with accurate and timely results.”
    “The potential applications of the Perosphere Technologies PoC Coagulometer will greatly expand thanks to these grant awards, accelerating our understanding of disease mechanisms and therapeutic approaches,” said Dr. Sasha Bakhru, CEO of Perosphere Technologies.